


Where In the World is Vera Cruz

by Cass_Phoenix



Category: Carmen Sandiego (Cartoon 2019)
Genre: A little angst, Carmen probably needs a hug, Just a bunch of family fluff, but mostly friends being friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:47:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23946406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cass_Phoenix/pseuds/Cass_Phoenix
Summary: "Carmen." Player said, voice trembling ever so slightly. "I found out who your Mom is…or was." Carmen knew that meant Vera Cruz was dead, but that was okay. She had already mentally prepared herself for that possibility. "Do tell." Carmen said anyway. She was not prepared for what Player said next. (A series of Oneshots.)
Relationships: Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep & Shadowsan, Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep & Zack, Ivy & Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep, Ivy & Zack (Carmen Sandiego), Player & Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep
Comments: 32
Kudos: 120





	1. Chapter 1

Carmen groaned, covering her head with one of her scarlet pillows, hissing as the phone continued to ring with monotonous persistence, grinding into her ears.

 _It's 3 am, Player._ She bitterly mused, lifting her head to stare at her alarm clock-lamp. _3\. AM. This had better be worth it._

The phone reached the end of the ring cycle before Carmen could pick it up, sending the caller to voicemail.

Carmen sighed with relief, burying herself right back into the soft, feathery pillows and relaxing as they snuggled around her. Bliss came with silence, and silence brought sleep. Finally, she could-

The phone started ringing again.

"Player." She snarled, snatching it up instantly and holding it to her ear, fingers curling around her quilt, hard enough that she was sure she was going to rip it. "Do you know what bloody time it is?"

" _For you? 3 am. For me? 7 am._"

"Great. Then you know now is a time when all good crimson shadows are _asleep_." Carmen hesitated. "Unless if you have another caper that we need to leave on _right away_."

" _Not exactly …_"

"Then good _night_." Carmen grunted, thumbing with her phone, trying to hang up.

" _Hold on, Red. You know I wouldn't wake you up without good reason_."

"Sure doesn't feel like good reason." Carmen snapped, glaring at her clock as it added a minute to its time frame. "Go to _sleep_. Even you shouldn't be awake this early…"

" _I got some info on Vera Cruz._ " Player said rapidly before she could hang up, trying to get her attention.

It worked. Carmen snapped up like she had been awake for hours, leaning forward eagerly even though doing so was futile. "What?"

" _That file you got from the isle of VILE; it doesn't just have info from the year Dexter Wolfe went AWOL. It's got intel from up to seven years previously, and two years after. Ten years in total. From almost every mission. Some is missing, of course, but-_ "

"Mom." Carmen reminded him, trying to get him back on track.

" _Right. So, Vera Cruz wasn't just a codename she used for the house, like we originally thought. She was a VILE agent_."

"Of course she was." Carmen grunted. "Should've guessed after the way she used Stealth 101 to fake her death."

" _Yep. Wolfe had only been faculty for about three years and had only just began teaching when she became a student. She was in the first class he ever taught, and…well, blah-blah-blah, budding romance. Not exactly unheard of in VILE history, but pretty rare_."

"You skipped all the interesting stuff." Carmen teased, opening the drawer on her bedside table and pulling out her headphones.

" _If you want to hear all the 'interesting stuff', read it yourself._ " Player joked back, snorting.

Carmen plugged in the headphones, slipping on her robe and stuffing the phone into her pocket.

" _Anyway, only a one-year operative when she abandoned the force, Vera Cruz vanished without a trace. Dexter Wolfe claimed that he would 'find Vera and would end her for betraying his trust'. Guess when his leaves of absence began getting more frequent and longer_."

"Oh my…" Carmen breathed, clicking the clues together. She made her way to the kitchen and began to boil some water.

" _Yeah. I'd say they secretly married while she was off the grid, and then had you._ "

"VILE trusted Dad with a secret mission? They didn't send more operatives after Mom?"

" _Actually, they did send one or two more. But tracking people isn't exactly one of VILE's strong suits. Remember how they couldn't find you as soon as you left VILE island? To be honest, you were not being discreet._ "

"Ehhh, good point." Carmen agreed, starting to notice bubbles at the water's surface.

" _Yeah; even kid-me noticed when they didn't find you after a week. Only a couple of them are good at tracking; like Shadowsan. And even he had to know where Dexter Wolfe was before starting to follow._ "

"You're right." Carmen realized, watching the bubbles begin to rise to the surface quicker.

" _Okay, so, back on topic, I began really looking into files and stuff, and pieced together a few things from the house deed to Shadowsan's story, from the VILE case files to ACME's network. Red, do you remember where Shadowsan said Dexter Wolfe was moving his funds?_ "

"Of course. Swiss bank accounts."

" _Precisely. Those have wicked good security; even I couldn't hack in._ "

"Humble." Carmen teased.

" _I am quite humble, aren't I?_ " Player bragged with a dramatic tone. " _But, seriously, Red, VILE wasn't able to get their funds back after that. The money remained in the banks. They noticed that, even after Wolfe's death, money was gradually removed from the account. They didn't think much of it, didn't even_ look into it. _Some investigators_."

"Player." Carmen reminded gently. As much as she loved hearing Player jab at incompetent VILE was, especially compared to himself, there was a time and a place. This certainly was not the time.

" _Right. Sorry, Red. Eyes on the target. So. Even though I wasn't able to hack into the main bank itself, I can find out who their members are and run a facial recognition scan. Combined with your face, the very blurred photo of Vera attached to the deed, and the official-trainee picture she had at ACME, I've been able to pin down two possible Veras._ "

"Two? That's one more then I'd like." Carmen mumbled, hurrying to turn off the burner and remove the kettle as it began to scream at the air around it.

" _That's one more then I'd like, too. I'm running a background check on them both right now as we speak._ "

"Names?"

" _Madeline Kathy Dunky and Stella Dotty Banner_."

"Stella Dotty Banner." Carmen said, biting her lip. "Sounds like a codename."

" _For the 'Star Speckled Banner_ '?"

"Yes, exactly."

" _It really does. A_ very American _name. If almost feels like overkill to have two code names; especially since one is what she's going to live by. But, hey, no judging. Like mother, like daughter, I guess_."

"I can hear you judging." Carmen smirked, pouring the water into a mug. "Mr. Judgey."

" _I am absolutely giving you a judgey-face_." Player cackled, and Carmen could just picture the expression he was probably wearing. (A very not judgey face. An amused visage, if anything.) " _Feel my judge_!"

"Wait, Player, hold on." Carmen said, breaking from the conversation. More entertained then annoyed, she pressed, "you woke me up at 3 am…and you _hadn't_ yet figured out which one was Mom?"

" _Nope_." Player cheerfully returned. " _I started the scans on two different computers at the same time; they should both end in fifteen minutes. I can review them and then tell you which one I think is your mom in the morning along with the basic facts…or you can hear them both for yourself in detail the moment they're loaded and tell me using your weird daughter-intuition and your regular brains which one is your mom._ "

"3 am. For this." Carmen teased, already knowing that he knew which one she would choose.

"I was wondering the same." Shadowsan said in greeting, sitting on the couch opposite Carmen. "I must admit, I was not expecting you, of all, to be awake at this hour. Much less talking to yourself."

"I'm talking to Player." Carmen told him, wincing slightly. "I didn't mean to wake you with the kettle."

"I do not mind." Shadowsan shrugged. He glanced at the headphones. "What is your closest comrade doing awake at this hour?"

" _Tell him it's later for me._ "

"It's later in the day for him." Carmen relayed, before pointing to the kettle she had settled on the coffee table. "There's extra water in there if you want me to get you so tea."

"Why are you talking when it is so early for you, though?" Shadowsan inquired, obviously worried for Carmen's health. He got up as he waited for an answer, striding over to the cabinet to pull out a mug.

She hesitated, fidgeting with her mug. She did wish to tell him as soon as possible, but she also wanted to hold off from telling the team until they were all together.

"I'll tell you later." She decided finally, sipping at her tea. "Any more info, Player?" She said, trying to tacitly inform Shadowsan that she wouldn't tell him any more.

Shadowsan understood and accepted it, pouring himself a cup of tea from the mug that - Carmen noted with amusement - had been scribbled on with a permanent marker by Zack that said '1# Ninja/Dad'.

" _I don't plan to rely solely upon the Swiss background check; I'm pulling information from several different sources. For example, I'm checking Stella Banner's Facebook and he profiles on other social media sights. Madeline has none of those that I could find, by the way._ "

"What can come of checking social media pages?" Carmen inquired, not even attracting an odd look from the instructor as he crept away back upstairs to his bedroom.

" _Number 1# rule of VILE academy_."

"No contact with the outside world." Carmen recited, brow furrowing. "What does that have to do with-"

" _1991\. She would not be updating of posting anything during at time, because she's supposed to be at VILE island. And if she did, I can track where it came from. If it originated from the Canary Islands…_"

"We know she snuck a devise in and managed to keep it hidden. Like I did." Carmen pieced together, refilling her now empty-mug and mixing the new water with the tea bag residue.

" _Ding-ding-ding! That's right_." Player confirmed enthusiastically. " _Hmm…okay, the time stamps don't go further back then 2005…uh…oh_."

"Player? What is it?"

" _Facebook was founded in 2004. All the sites she was one were created in the starter years of the 21st century._ "

"So nothing _could_ be posted in 1991."

" _Yeah. Unfortunately._ " Player paused thoughtfully. " _I was thinking, Red…Carmen…which one do you_ want _to be your mom?_ "

Carmen sighed. "Don't know enough to make an educated decision. All I know is their names. I think it'd be interesting to have code names run in the family, but it might be cool to have one normal person in our family of ex-VILE members."

" _True._" Player agreed. " _But are you sure you want the last name 'Dunky_ '?"

"Don't be rude, Player." Carmen snorted in mirth. "I'm sure they don't want their surname teased like that."

" _Then they should've changed it to Wolfe. Talk about a cool last name. Like, Red, even _I'd _change my name to Wolfe given the chance. I'm surprised you haven't!_ "

"Sandiego already works pretty well. Why change?"

"Wolfe, _Red_. **Wolfe.** " Player empathized, and she could practically see his wide eyes and fingers pinching together as he tried to explain to her. " _If that doesn't strike fear in the hearts of your enemies, I don't know what will._ "

A beep sounded from his end, and she could hear his chair squeak as he turned it. " _Scan is done on Stella. She finished early, I guess_."

"Hit me with it."

" _Stella Banner was born to Jennifer Banner in 1969._"

"Uh-oh. Already a no-no." The birth year was wrong.

" _Stella was raised in Maryland, where she got education up to one year of college before dropping out. However, her education was enough to get her two part-time jobs at two restaurants. She didn't pay any taxes until she was thirty; her mother footed the bills._ "

"No sign of her leaving anywhere in thirty years?"

" _Aside from a Disneyland trip for a week? No. We could interrogate her mother for all the information we want. Miss. Jennifer's still alive._ "

"Okay, proceed."

" _Her decade of working at fast-food got her more then a million dollars; she had spent almost none of it. She opened a Swiss Bank and moved to Switzerland, abandoning her mother to go live in expense. Up in Switzerland, she got an extremely high-paying job, and has been building on her funds ever since. It won't tell me how much money she currently has, if you're curious._"

"I'm not sure about her." Carmen said, frowning at the brown liquid in her mug. "It doesn't seem like she took the time to join VILE."

" _She also has no criminal records. The majority of VILE's operatives have at least a few charges of theft. That's part of the reason VILE takes them in; to train them not to get caught. It is entirely possible that she lied to the Swiss Bank and to everyone about her whereabouts during those years. After all, she hardly interacted with anyone besides her mother during that time._"

"Good point, Player." Carmen praised, staring down at her coffee. "I can tell by your voice you're thinking of other inconsistencies."

" _I am. Her birth year is wrong, and her backstory seems too…usual for a VILE operative. Yeah, she could fake it, but I'm pretty sure the Swiss Bank does serious background checks. Did her mother lie and fast-food employers fake their record of employees during that time?_ "

"That's a hole in the story."

" _Also, Jennifer Bangle was a teen mom. Of_ course _she named her daughter a pun._"

"Oh, com'n, Player, you'd name your kid a pun." Carmen grinned, fondly rolling her eyes at his reluctant noise of agreement. "So we're _not_ leaning toward Stella right now?"

" _I'm not._" Player said. " _Are you_?"

"No."

" _Then no. We're not._" Player paused. " _Carmen, do you want me to try to get your mom to come here when we find her, or do you want to go to Switzerland once I track her down?_ "

"Go to Switzerland." Carmen responded after weighing the options. She was so thankful to have a best friend like Player. He knew her well enough to guess what she wanted, but he still gave her the chance to choose. Knowing him, he was already looking at flights to Switzerland and wondering which one would be best to get her on. But he wouldn't buy anything until she told him what she wanted for herself.

" _Alright, I'll look at private jets tomorrow._ " Player relayed. " _Or, technically, later today. I ordered a care package and it's en route right now. It has everything you need for your trip and should arrive by 8 am. When you go, please pack everything __you find in it._ "

"Perfect, Player." Carmen beamed, sipping her tea again. "Thank you."

" _Of course_." Player responded, and Carmen wished she could envelope him in a big hug.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Player." Carmen told him. "I wouldn't have gotten as far as I did without you, and I'm fairly certain you just stayed up all night doing research on my mom. You're amazing."

" _Aw, Red_!" Player probably beamed happily and perked up. " _You know how much I want to help you, especially after everything you've done._"

"You already spoil me plenty." Carmen reminded her best friend. "You don't have to do half of what you do."

"I know." He stated cheerfully. " _But it makes me feel good when I held you out. When I help_ all _of you out. Carmen, you're my best - and first - friend. Of course I'm going to assist you in every way I possibly can. I'm with you until the end of the line._ "

"I know that, Player, and that's what makes you so amazing." Carmen played with the string at the end of her tea bag, smiling at the area in front of her as if she was smiling at him. "You stick with me no matter what. You were the first to do so, and you've never questioned it. You trust me, and I trust you."

" _That's what makes us so great_." Player chimed softly, voice lowering happily.

"Yes." Carmen agreed just as gently, and the duo lulled into a very comfortable silence. "It is."

She wasn't sure how long they sat there with nothing but Player's subtle typing to keep them company, but a beep was what tore the absence of sound.

" _Welp_." Player immediately chimed thoughtfully. " _That'd be Ms. Dunky's background check, and- what_."

"What?" Carmen asked, perking up.

" _Sorry, getting ahead of myself. I saw the word 'kidnapped' and zoned in_."

"What." Carmen blinked in the same deadpan tone he had used.

" _We'll get there. Starting at the top! Madeline Dunky was born to a fairly poor family in 1971, Cathleen and Samson Dunky, who died when she was ten and twelve respectively. She shoplifted several items after their departure, living on the streets and fighting to survive. Even after being fostered, she still remained a wild-child and robbing and threatening multiple people. She has twenty_ reported _crimes of theft. Probably many others besides. When she was twenty-one, she claims she was kidnapped._ "

"Twenty-one is the earliest someone can join VILE." Carmen realized. "And they train for a year. She might've been with VILE during that time."

" _More proof; it says after a year,_ " Player paused to let that sink in, " _she appeared again as a very different person. More subdued, not acting like a criminal at all. She stated that she doesn't remember her kidnappers' faces and never knew where kept her. Barely two years later, she got married in a courthouse, and changed her last name to…_ " Player trailed off.

"Player?" Carmen prompted, tensing slightly, biting her lip.

" _Madeline Wolfe_." He finished, inhaling sharply. " _Red-_ "

"That's Mom." She whispered, hope soaring into her chest. She had _found her. Player_ had found her. Madeline Wolfe. Her mother. There she was. She was _right here_. She rubbed at her eyes, trying to stifle her flood of tears. "Player…that's her."

" _Carmen_!" Player squealed in glee. "We found her!"

"Keep going!" Carmen begged. "Finish the story!"

" _Okay! Madeline Wolfe had married Dexter Wolfe, though their marriage was kept secret from as many people as they could. Dexter Wolfe was the one who placed all funds in the bank, making it so only Madeline had his permission - and himself of course - to pull them out. When they had their daughter, Doreen Wol-_ " Player choked again.

"I have a name." Carmen realized, covering her mouth to quench her hiccup. "They _named_ me. I…I-I never knew."

" _Me neither_." Player whispered, and she realized that he was witnessing almost all the same emotions as she was. " _Carmen_ …" His unsaid question, 'should I stop?', was left unsaid in the air.

"Don't stop now!" Carmen pleaded, bouncing in her seat, quivering.

" _When they had their daughter, Doreen Wolfe, Madeline moved to Switzerland and bought a two-bedroom apartment while someone named Vera Cruz bought Madeline's villa from her. Vera agreed to house Dexter and Doreen for a while, and then died from a terminal illness hardly a month later._ "

"As we already know, Vera's Madeline." Carmen said quietly, drawing her knees to her chest. "Living a double life."

" _That's right, Red_." Player agreed, and she could picture him nodding enthusiastically. " _Dexter and Doreen continued to live in the house for two weeks, before it caught on fire and they were supposedly killed in the blaze_."

"Mom thinks we're both dead." Carmen realized. "I-I mean, she's right about Dad…but…" She gulped. "Proceed."

" _She remained in Switzerland, not even returning to attend the funeral, claiming that it was 'all a conspiracy' and that they weren't actually deceased. After a year, she finally admitted they were dead but waited a year before changing her name back to Dunky." Player stopped, silence filtering between them. "_ _That's all of the relevant stuff. Everything else blabs on about how she's living peacefully. Still in Biel_."

"Did…did she ever remarry? And maybe have more children, or-?" Carmen asked hopefully, wondering if she had an extended family or not. The very idea of a larger family intrigued her.

" _No, Red. She's still alive and still signal_." Player spoke apologetically, picking up on her wishful undertones. " _Just her. You and her._ "

"Player…when is the earliest I can go?" Carmen inquired, standing up to pick up the dishes and put them beside the sink.

" _Searching… okay, just bought you tickets to a private flight that'll leave at ten am_ _. It would get you there twelve and a half hours later, about, and that should give us a while to figure out how to do 'the reveal'_."

"Thanks so much, Player. You're being so amazing!" Carmen whipped at her eyes as she hurried to her room, closing the door behind her quietly. "You're the bestest friend I could ask for, you know that?"

" _Besides the fact that you've said that a dozen times tonight alone by now? " _He teased, before sobering up. _" I do my best, Red. Everything I do, though, you deserve it. And more besides. You've helped so many people, even taking in two orphaned siblings as family when you could've just ignored them and moved on with your day. You've made a home for not only them, but also for a ninja, too. You gave me a purpose. You help pretty much everyone – excluding VILE, of course – that you come in contact with, and you're a hero._ _Vigilante, sure, but still a hero._ "

Carmen closed her eyes, letting herself be drowned in his praise.

 _Funny,_ she mused, _Player was really the one who found me so long ago, on VILE island. He's the one who helped me grow so much as a person and was who helped me realize I needed to escape. And now, two years after my escape, he's the one who found my mother._

_Player's more of a hero then I ever was._

(:)

Madeline Dunky swallowed down the uneasy feeling that followed her, padding across the crosswalk to reach the other side of the street, keeping her grip on her purse tight. She could feel eyes staring at her; just like they had done a quarter of a century ago when she had first fled VILE. She knew she was being trailed and cursed her terrible luck. Twenty years of peace, and now the operatives had resurfaced. How had they even _found_ her? VILE was frankly full of _idiots_.

They had been incompetent for so long; why track a forty-nine-year-old who escaped from VILE an entire twenty-five years before hand? Who hadn't even told anyone about them because she knew she wouldn't be believed? _Ugh_. They were being _stupid_ and a little immature.

Even Dex, as rash and foolish as he could be, knew not to pursue a mission for multiple years at a time. Like, sure, he had never _needed_ to pursue a mission for that long, a week at most, but she knew he wouldn't have. Dex was smart in that regard.

Madeline supposed that now that she was being hovered over by VILE's operatives, she could never return to her favorite store again. It was a quaint little corner store, but it was quite lovely. It carried her favorite kind of soup. She'd miss it. Until the VILE agents attacked her and killed her, or vise-versa, Madeline knew that she could never go about her usual routes.

She stood in front of the store for about five minutes, considering if she should even enter the shop in the first place – not wanting to put any of the employees in danger – before deciding that VILE couldn't just kill everyone she interacted with. Besides, that annoying cashier, Jesse, might be working today. She wouldn't mind if they took 'im out. So, Madeline entered.

To her frustration, it wasn't Jessie who was working the check-out aisle, but a man that she had never seen before. He only appeared to be a few years younger than her, if not her same age. _Sorry, dude._ She thought remorsefully. _Letting them target you is nothing personal. I just really want the chicken noodle soup. I hope your family isn't depending on you providing for them._

She continued along, searching the soup aisle for her favorite broth. She glanced back once or twice, feeling the new man's eyes on her each time.

Okaaay…that was weird. Like, she knew there was nobody else in he store, but didn't he have…like…money to count or something?

Madeline picked up her chicken noddle soup, before heading to the kitchen supplies aisle. She took a package of knives before walking to an area of the store where the man couldn't see her, tearing a slit in the back of the package. If need be, she could reach in and take out a knife in less then a second.

She was beginning to think this man was with VILE. How long had they tracked her before she tuned in to their sneaky ways?

Madeline walked over to the cashier, packing a cutting board, a soup ladle, and a few apples with her so that the knives didn't seem it of place. She set them in front of him, making sure that the whole time he was scanning them the knives were within reach.

The scanner didn't beep. The money wasn't adding up on the screen; it just renamed a blank white.

Red flags were being raised all over the place, and Madeline pretended to look nonchalant while inside she wanted to run _far away_.

"How has your day been progressing?" The man asked politely, running the apples under the scanner.

"Good." Madeline said briefly. "Average."

"Mm. I am aware of that feeling." He agreed, glancing at the still-white screen. "20.93."

That… made no sense. That amount required the dollar bill. Not the Swiss franc. VILE _was_ stupid.

She reached into her purse and pulled out as close as money as she could get from her purse, mentally converting it, and handed it over.

The man took it, glancing at it with not a trace of confusion, reaching under the desk, supposedly to grab change.

However, Madeline wasn't surprised when, instead of pulling out money, he came up with empty hands and the security system flicked on around them, doors automatically locking and bars closing around the windows.

She reached for her package of knives, snatching it up and taking a step back from the man. She glanced out the window to see if any pedestrians had noticed, then looked back to find…

The man was gone.

Uhhhh…that wasn't good.

She reached her hand into the casing, grabbing as many knives as she could, scowling as she surveyed the area around her.

_Don't show fear._

_Don't act surprised._

_Don't be weak._

She recited in her mind on a loop, turning slowly.

She would not go back to VILE island. Not after what they had done to her daughter and husband. (She was still certain VILE had started that fire.)

Madeline was about to try to break the window to escape when she heard behind her, in a soft, female voice, "Vera Cruz."

Madeline froze at the name, staring pointedly at the window. She could make out a woman standing behind her, the top half of her face unseeable due to the shadows and the screwy window reflection. The woman was wearing a simple, every-day outfit; jeans, navy blue shirt, red jacket. (The VILE uniforms were really getting less and less creative.)

"I knew VILE would find me eventually." Madeline dealt back graciously, knowing very well that only VILE would know her codename. "Just surprised by your commitment. You aren't know to be competent."

"I'm not with VILE." The woman returned immediately. "Well, not anymore. I'm like you. I escaped."

Madeline laughed outright at that, not turning around. "Impossible. I barely escaped with faculty help, and they surely are now guarded against the way I escaped. Nobody else could do what I did. Again."

"I would _love_ to get the intel on how you escaped. On a later date." The woman waved dismissively, her lips twisting into a sad smile. "That's not the point. Ma'am, Vera Cruz, Madeline Wolfe, or Dunky, I…I want to introduce myself."

"Just don't monologue." Madeline mumbled, sliding a knife into sleeve discretely, ready to throw at a moments' notice.

"I won't."

 _Keen hearing._ Madeline thought in appreciation. _Nice._

"I'm most commonly known as Carmen Sandiego." The woman recited quietly, as if she had been training to say this for a long time. "My friends call me 'Carm' or 'Red'. I was given the code name Black Sheep by VILE. My real name, though, is Doreen Wolfe. It's a…it's a pleasure to meet you."

Madeline choked as if she had been punched, knife sliding from the sleeve and clattering to the floor along with the entire package. She wheezed hoarsely, barely able to grip the metal bar crisscrossing the window to keep from collapsing.

She hadn't heard that name in _so long_ , it was even more foreign then 'Vera Cruz' was.

_Doreen._

_Doreen Wolfe._

"You're wrong." Madeline managed to fumble out, trembling. "No one…no one escaped the fire."

"Nobody died in that fire." The woman – Carmen, Black Sheep, Doreen - corrected. "Dad died before that fire ever started, and I was rescued from it by the very person who started it."

Madeline turned, scowling at Carmen, ready to criticize her and tell her that _no, that's impossible, you're lying, nobody in VILE, the only people who were terrible enough to do such a thing, would save a baby_ , but then she saw Carmen's eyes. Greyish-blue, gentle, seeming to understand, though held with worry. They looked just like Dex's. Right when Madeline – then Vera – told him that she couldn't bear to continue being part of VILE, about how it was filled with horrible people and ' _A woman is known by the company she keeps. A_ man, _Dex, is known by the company he keeps. And I don't want to be known as a thief anymore.'_

Dex had been scared, and rightly so, of leaving VILE. But he had understood that she wanted out, and he assisted her with planning her escape, and she helped him figure out when and how he would leave to later be by her side, too.

This woman had Dex's eyes, and she stood straight and tall, just like he had done so many times before. But everything else…everything else Madeline recognized simply from looking in the mirror every day. The woman even had the small birthmark over her eyebrow that Madeline had. The misshapen nick that divided the tip of the eyebrow from the main hulk of it.

Madeline's mouth dropped from a frown to a gape, eyebrows knitting together in shock. _Doreen_. "Doreen?" She croaked, staring at the girl. "Wha-? How?"

Doreen smiled slightly, eyes filling with joy. "Hi, Mom."

"Hi, sweetie." Madeline whispered, pushing forward off the barred window to approach the girl, stumbling forward after a few steps. Doreen rushed to support her and help her stand upright, and the two women hugged, Madeline's fingers burying into her daughter's locks, staring at the amber hair color, only a few shades darker than her own. "Doreen." She uttered quietly, blinking away her tears. "You're here. _How_?"

"I-I'll tell you everything." Doreen promised. "Just not here, not now. Somewhere… somewhere more private. I'll tell you everything you want to know, and everything I do know."

"Where do you want to go, Doreen?" Madeline asked, pushing back slowly to admire her daughter. She could tell already what a strong young woman she had become, so far from the mere infant Madeline had left behind.

"I'll show you." Doreen said, taking her hand. "I'll take you to my family; the people who've supported me for so long. You'll like them, Mom, I think you will. I'll explain everything, and…"

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Madeline asked, beaming down at her daughter. "Let's go."

(:)

Doreen took her first to a red minivan, obviously a rental, where two red-head American siblings waited along with the man who had been working the counter at the quaint store. The man apologized for the ruse almost immediately, before the red-head boy, who was driving, had even started the car.

"Mom," Doreen said, "this is Zack, Ivy, and Shadowsan. They're some of my family and closest friends."

"There's more?" Madeline asked, already feeling a little overwhelmed.

"Just one more." Doreen explained. "We'll meet him once we get to the motel; that's where I left my computer."

"Okay." Madeline agreed mildly, crossing her arms uncertainly. She sat beside Doreen, Shadowsan in the seat in front of her and the siblings in the front seats of the van.

"So, uh, Mrs. Sandiego," the redhead boy – Zack – asked, looking at her through the mirror attached to the top of the windshield. "How long've you been stayin' in Biel?"

"Sandiego?" Madeline echoed, uncertain. She knew that was Doreen's alias, but didn't they know that?

"It's Dunky, bro!" Ivy hissed, slapping his arm. Zack flinched, and the car jolted a little. "And it's 'Miss'!"

"Right, right." Zack amended with a rushed nod. "Mrs. Dunky, how long've you been stayin' in Biel?"

"Miss…" Ivy mumbled, but Madeline ignored it

"About twenty years, now. Maybe a little longer." Madeline told them with a small smile. "I've been living here ever since Doreen turned one."

"Doreen?" Zack inquired, peaking at her again.

"That'd be Carm." Ivy translated with a groan. "Out of curiosity, how much have ya been listenin' to Carm for the last, oh, I dunno, three days?"

"I've been busy thinkin' of fondue!" Zack shrugged. "You know how my stomach works, Iv!"

"Do you always think with your stomach?" Shadowsan grumbled, clearly annoyed.

"I dunno! Do I?" Zack sassed back, though he sounded genuinely curious.

This was the strangest conversation Madeline had listened to since that one time Dash Haber and Kara Rate – two of her classmates – discussed how long it took a turtle to climb a tree using nothing but an eggbeater.

"Sorry, Mom." Doreen said quietly. "I've been going by Carmen Sandiego for the last two years, that everyone knows me as only that. I didn't even know my name was actually Doreen until three days ago."

"How did you learn that?" Madeline wondered aloud, frowning at her daughter in confusion. "And before you became Carmen, what were you known as?"

"She was typically known as Black Sheep during her time at VILE academy." It was Shadowsan who answered, voice deep and calm, no hint of emotion.

"That's right." Carmen confirmed. "I…I was raised on VILE island, actually, for nineteen years after the fire. I wasn't aware of my heritage, or of VILE's true form, for the entire time. It wasn't until I turned nineteen and joined VILE's program that I began to piece together that it wasn't all just stealing for fun. That they hurt people and even killed them. It wasn't until I met Player that I realized that I had to get out. That I had to escape."

"Who's Player?" Madeline inquired, knowing that she must owe this person a great deal, as he was implied as being the one to introduce her daughter to the world outside of VILE's desolate island location.

"My first and best friend. He's very endearing." Doreen – or should she be called Carmen now? - clarified. "He's actually listening in right now, and could talk to me, if he wanted, but you wouldn't be able to hear him without me raising the volume, and if I raise the volume…"

"Let's just say her ear'rum would get shatt'red from the high frequency." Ivy finished, looking around the passenger seat. "Or at l'st get significan'ly strained. It's at juuust the ri' volume so that it can't be 'rd by VILE operatives that might be very close, and loud enough that Carm can 'ear him over any sort of background noise, even ex'losions. You can only really 'ear him if he's screamin'. And the frequency is tuned with the volume so that it can't be tracked. Actually, if the frequency was much 'igher, it'd activate a kind of so'ic screech and wou' make an'one within a hun'red-yard ra'ius 'o hard of hearin' for se'eral hours, and ever'one within a ten-yard radius to go deaf permanent-'ike."

"Which is why I avoid turning it up louder." Doreen wrapped up, shrugging. "That wasn't exactly worth a tangent, but I suppose we'd have to explain it sooner or later."

"Just 'ike we'll h've to ex'lain how I invented it." Ivy bragged, a prideful smirk blossoming upon her face.

"Ivy's our residential technician." Doreen elaborated.

"Carm' says that's a nice way to say tha' she's a nerd." Zack translated, and Ivy turned to him with a glare.

"That is not something I have said, ever." Doreen said, though she looked very much like she had said it at least once. "Player said that."

"Oh, he's a bigger nerd then I've ever been!" Ivy protested. "I 'ike tech! Doesn' make me a nerd!"

"'course not. It's that egghead that does." Zack teased, glancing at her enough to poke her forehead with one arm, keeping the other hand firmly on the wheel.

"Eyes on the road, Zack." Shadowsan ordered. "Ivy sit back. It's dangerous to face backwards in case your brother is incompetent and crashes. The airbag would be ineffective. Carmen, continue to catch up with Miss. Dunky."

Madeline was extremely appreciative of Shadowsan, especially when the siblings quieted down instantly, straightening and returning their eyes forward.

"So, this Player fellow…" Madeline said slowly, turning to Carmen. "How did he assist you off of VILE island? Did he have to stay behind, or were you able to figure out how to bring him along? What ranking was he? How'd you meet? What's going on between you two?"

"Player encouraged me, most of all. He wasn't able to do much, since he wasn't actually on the island. So, no, I didn't leave him behind on the island. He doesn't exactly have a ranking, unless 'secret weapon' counts as one. We met when he hacked my phone. Nothing's going on." Carmen/Doreen answered in short order. "Shadowsan was the main one who assisted, actually, even though I didn't know he had at the time. He was faculty and was able to stall the Cleaners from following me until I could make it safely away. He escaped from VILE island himself almost a year later and joined my team and I afterwards."

"Faculty?" Madeline dully responded, narrowing her eyes. "Was he the one who replaced Dex?"

"Dex?" Carmen/Doreen frowned, brow creasing for a second before softening. "Oh, like, Dexter. Dad! Oh, uh, yeah, Shadowsan did. They thought he was the one who ended up killing Dad though he only faked it and wanted to reward him for doing so. Uh, yeah, he became faculty."

Madeline's eyebrows furrowed, confusion rooting itself in her stomach, becoming more confused with every word. "Explain everything. In chronological order.

And so, Carmen did. She explained every bit of it.

(:)

"Finally, Mom, here's Player!" Dore- uh, _Carmen_ said, pulling out the computer and turning it on. Only ten seconds later, the screen turned darker and a young, teenage boy popped up, lifting his hand in friendly greeting.

Madeline stared at him, confusion filling her. Ivy and Zack, even with being young adults, were bad enough. But this… "He's a child." She deadpanned.

Player's face dropped from being cheerful to unimpressed within a millisecond. " _How original_."

"Player might be young, but, like I've said before, he's the smartest person I've met." Carmen relayed again for what felt like the tenth time. "He's the only reason I'm here now. While I say that I doubt I ever would've ended up stealing for VILE, that probably would be a false statement if it wasn't for Player."

Player grinned in unconcealed pride, glancing at Carmen happily.

"He's…Player's actually the reason I found you." Carmen told Madeline. "The only reason I ever learned the name 'Vera Cruz' or anything else about you. I wouldn't ever had found out anything about my family without him. He's the one who tracked you down and figured out where you were and everything I needed to know about you. He's never hidden anything from me, well, except for-"

"- _The surprise party we threw for her_ _on December 1st that first year._" Player finished, beaming at her.

"Yep." Carmen nodded, gesturing to him. "He's vigilant, trustworthy, smart, and slightly nerdy, but not in a bad way."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you." Madeline told him politely. "I'd shake your hand if you were in person, but…eh… you're not, so…"

" _Likewise._ " Player responded with a nod. " _Don't count on actually ever meeting me, though._ "

"Nobody in our team, except for myself, has actually met him in person." Carmen explained. "I did, once, long ago, when delivering the original VILE hard drive, before realizing that associating myself with him physically would make him a target, especially if anyone spotted me entering his house."

" _We'd prefer to keep me as secret of a 'weapon' as we can make me._ " Player finished cheerfully.

"That's true." Carmen agreed enthusiastically, before biting down on her lip in fear. "It's… honestly already risky having him constantly in contact with us through my earpiece, but-"

"T _hose earrings have a 100% Ivy-guaranteed no-hacking policy. And Ivy never guarantees anything unless if she's at least 95% certain that the guarantee is valid._ " Player persisted, not looking like he even wanted to consider the possibility of leaving Carmen alone for even a second. " _She sent me blueprints, and I've looked them over. I'm about as sure as Ivy is that the com route is secure_."

"The entire team has helped me so much." Carmen told Madeline quietly, smiling at Player. "Player most of all, yeah," – Madeline had a feeling Carmen would be saying so even if the rest of the team was there; they knew who her best friend was out of them all – "but they've all done their part. They've all provided comfort or known how to work things out, and…"

Carmen hesitated, fidgeting. "I don't know what you want to do, but I'd be really happy if you joined the team. Joined the _family_. You can stay here, if you'd like, but-"

"Stay here?" Madeline laughed, thinking up her answer instantly. She had been pondering what she'd go and do for the last hour, whether or not her daughter even wanted her around, but she already knew what her own answer would be. "And miss out on more mother-daughter moments that we never got the chance to have? No way, sweetie. I'm coming with you. Our family will not be divided any longer. Besides, taking down VILE? That's what Dex and I always wanted to do back in the day." Madeline insisted. "I'm sticking with you. And your odd team/family/thing."

" _Sometimes a family is an ex-thief, her daughter who was raised by thieves, a ninja, an ex-thief, a hacker, and two almost-insane siblings from Boston_." Player joked, and it sounded like he had gotten it from somewhere. " _It's a very, very weird family, but a family nonetheless._ "

Madeline wrapped her arms around Carmen carefully, smiling at her gently. "Family." The two women said together, both closing their eyes as they leaned in.

They look virtually identical as they did so, except for Madeline's few stands of grey hair, the perfect mother-daughter pair.

Player smiled at them, shoulders slumping in a relaxed position.

He reached out to turn off the FaceTime call, opting to let them have some time for just the two of them. He'd be here when they were ready for him to come back.

But first…

He leaned back, staring at the ceiling for a moment, then closed his eyes for longer then ten seconds for the first time in several days, sighing peacefully.

Next, he would look for any other stragglers of Ivy and Zack's family that the siblings didn't know of.

It was the least he could do for his family.

Even though he had never so much as touched any of them - except for Carmen once almost two years beforehand - they still were his, and he would do anything for them.

He'd help them like only he could, and pray that was enough.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Player's family calling him 'Player' instead of his real name is actually a reference to my older brother. He lived with a nickname for years upon years, with only Mom and maybe Dad referring to him by his real name on occasion. It wasn't until recently that he began going by his real name again.  
> Fun fact 2.0: Player still referring to Carmen as 'Sheep' in front of his family is actually a reference to my own experiences with internet friends. If I ever learned my friends' real names, or a new alias, chances are I'd still call them by their original fake names for a long time. (Except for those times I learned their real names almost instantly. LOL.)  
> Using personal experience is fun!

These days, it was rare for Player to get any time to himself or his family. He either had to plot a caper with Carmen, or collaborate with Ivy on more of Carmen's tech, or plot the quickest route around town for Zack to drive to help Carmen escape from a sticky situation or talk to Shadowsan about Ca…

Oh, wow, everything in his life revolved around Carmen at this point, didn't it? Huh.

Understandably, he jumped at the opportunity when his mom offered to take him out to the mall to have some quality mother-son bonding. He had fun with his mom as they strolled about, purchasing new computers and devices for three hours, shopping for barely half an hour for clothes before Player lost interest – after finding a few pieces of red clothing, including a crimson baseball cap – before stopping by the food court to get lunch.

It was a nice, simple change for Player's usually hectic life – even without being with Carmen and the rest of the team physically. His mother was a smart woman and was very kind to him. He loved spending time with her, especially with how well she got him. After his triplet sisters were born, she had lost most of the time she used to use to hang out with him to taking care of them. It was nostalgic to be with her again.

"So, Diego," His mom said, sipping at the water she had bought. His real name was so rarely used, even among his own family, that it caused him to jolt in surprise. "What have you been doing in that cave of yours lately? How's…uh…what's her name…Sheep?"

"Sheep's fine." Player assured, drumming his fingers against the table. His family still referred to Carmen as 'Black Sheep' because that, really, was what Player called her for three years before she made up the name Carmen Sandiego instead. "We're in a research project right now; I'm trying to help her find her family. Her biological family, because, you know, she was adopted as a baby."

"Oh, really? Do you have anything to go by? Names? Pictures?" His mom inquired, tilting her head slightly to consider it.

Player remembered with sudden clarity that his mother had actually been in the HR department in the government. If anyone would know the name, it would be his mother. "We have a name. And a very blurry picture from Sheep's family's house deed. Um…Her name was Vera Cruz."

His mom barely managed to catch her glass before it smashed against the table, grey eyes bugging in shock. "Where- whose name is that? Is that _Sheep's_ mother's name?"

"Y-Yes." Player nodded, a bit put-off by his mother's reaction. "Are…are you okay? What happened?"

"Sheep… Sheep is Dorothy?" His mom choked, trembling. "She's… what's…that's impossible, they all died in the fire! That's…"

"Mom?" Player queered again, reaching out his hand to touch hers, not exactly sure what to do here. "What's going on?"

His mom looked back and forth urgently, shoulders rounding. "We've…we've got to talk about this somewhere else, Diego." She squeezed his fingers quietly, standing up. "Grab your taco or whatever you want to finish. We'll talk about this in depth in the car."

(:)

It was still strange to have an HQ. Even after nearly two months of living inside it, Carmen still wasn't used to the tasks that came with having a house. Zack and Ivy, used to taking care of their apartment for about six years, were fluent with all the tasks and pretty much ruled the building. They even had a system. For meals, Zack would cook, and Ivy would wash. Ivy even managed to convince Shadowsan and Carmen both to begin helping her with dishes. Carmen rinsed all the soap and bubbles from the dishes and would put them by the counter to dry. They'd sit overnight, and Shadowsan would put them away when he got up in the morning.

It was a mundane task, yet Carmen enjoyed it. It was mindless, which gave her an opportunity to talk to Player without having to cut him off to concentrate on part of her duty. Or it let her be alone with her own thoughts when Player wasn't around.

That particular day, Player was busy doing something with his mom. He didn't get a chance to mess with his computers – much less talk to Carmen – until she and Ivy had already started working together on the dishes in perfect harmony.

"Carmen." Player said, and the crimson ghost snapped to attention. It wasn't just his tone of voice that cut into ears, it was literally her name. He hadn't said her name for months unless if he was worried about her or nervous. So, her title on his tongue as well as the slight waver that his vocal cords carried immediately pulled Carmen in.

"Yes, Player?" Carmen responded easily, fighting to keep him from telling how scared she was about whatever he was about to tell her.

Ivy glanced up from the dish she was washing, then looked back down, able to tell even without being able to hear Player that Carmen was about to fall into a conversation with her best friend.

"I-I found out who your mom is. Or…or was."

Carmen bit her lip. She could already tell that meant that her mother was dead. She had known that was a likelihood and had already prepared herself mentally. Still, it hurt to know her last remaining family member was dead. At least she still had her team.

"Do tell." She said to Player, rinsing off the frying pan and setting it on the towel beside the sink.

"Um, okay, background. My mom used to work in the government, in an HR department. I figured, 'hey, if anyone knows who Vera Cruz is, it's gotta be her'. So… I tried it out. It was risky, I know!" He hurriedly added when Carmen stiffened. "But my mom's smart; she knows how to keep a secret."

"Okay, go on." Carmen pressed, not really minding that he had. It just surprised her; Player was usually so careful to keep his homelife and his hacker life separate.

"My mom actually recognized the name. She said she knew Vera personally." Player continued, and she could just imagine him waving his arms in shock as he explained it. "Vera Cruz used to be Caroline Nunavut, but my mom called her Carol. She met Dexter Wolfe when she was twenty and married him in a courthouse three years after. My mom was one of the witnesses."

"So, they knew each other?" Carmen repeated with interest, perking up. "Do you think I can talk to her sometime?"

"Trust me, she really wants to talk to you." Player told her. "I'm going to fly you over to Ontario once we're all ready."

"There's more to the story." Carmen realized. "Shouldn't have interrupted. Proceed, Player."

Player paused for a long moment, and she could feel him trying to figure out how to explain this. Something told her that he had called her as soon as he could, which meant he hadn't had time to plan out how to break the entire thing to her. "Well…um… Mom was one of the few people who knew all of Caroline's proceedings. She didn't really know Dexter Wolfe's background, but she knew he was on the run. Or was going to be. She helped Caroline fake the name Vera Cruz and figure out how she would disappear. Mom was one of the major helping hands in the whole debacle. Mom was actually the one to help your mom deliver you, since it was a home birth."

Carmen winced slightly. That was…weird to hear. "Okay."

"The rendezvous in mind for where your mom was going to meet up with your dad and you was Ontario. But then…the fire. Vera Cruz went almost mad with grief. She was certain that the fire was faked by 'the mafia' – she probably meant VILE – she was in denial for almost five years. She died fourteen years ago." Player gulped, and Carmen could tell that this was the main part of the story. "Carmen, she wasn't just a good friend of my mom. Vera was closer than that. Mom and Vera Cruz, they were…" another hesitation. "…they were sisters."

Carmen's ears began to ring, and the world began to fade away to black until all she could hear was Player's voice, all she could see was an image of her mother and Player's mother growing up together, having fun, being sisters, being best friends, Vera having Carmen, Player's mother having him, and- oh.

Player was speaking again. "Carmen, that means we're-"

"-cousins." Carmen finished dully, the bowl she had been holding slipping form her fingers, shattering against the floor, splintering into half a million pieces. Several pieces cut through her legs, and probably cut Ivy's, too, because she could hear the older woman hiss in surprise distantly.

Outside of the world Carmen was aware of, Ivy jumped as the bowl made impact. "Tea cakes and crum'ets!" Ivy cursed as a few stray bits of glass cut into her skin. "Carm! Be more caref-" Ivy looked up in irritation, only to find Carmen staring blankly at the area in front of her, certainly not focusing on anything out the window. Just… staring. "Carm?"

Carmen let out a whimper, collapsing to her knees, gripping the counter fiercely like it was a lifeline, staring at the ground and trembling.

"Carmen!" Ivy cried, flashing toward her. Shadowsan leaped over the counter from the front room, landing beside the two girls, Zack arriving only a few seconds after, both staring at Carmen in extreme worry and fear.

Carmen began to wail.

(:)

"Are ya sure you don't wan' us comin' in with you?" Zack confirmed for the tenth time in a row, gripping the steering wheel.

"Yes, Zack." Carmen repeated for the tenth time, smiling at him kindly. "I'll be fine. When Aunt Piper's ready, I'll bring you guys in, too. Besides," she glanced out the window at the house they were parked beside, smiling to herself, "I'll have Player if things go south, as usual."

"Yea, but this isn't normal." Ivy murmured, leaning back in her seat. "This is weird, Carm, and really, really sudden. Are ya sure you can trust 'em?"

"Yes, Ivy. They're my family." Camren told them, moving to open up the car door so that she could leave. "Everything's going to go great. I'll come get you in a bit, okay?"

"Okay." Both siblings chimed, before glancing nervously at Shadowsan who was seated in the back of the car. He raised his hand at them in greeting, and they looked back at Carmen. "He's not goin' in?"

"No. He's staying here. Oh, and Shadowsan? Don't butcher 'em." Carmen warned. "You're getting paid to babysit, remember."

"Wai', babysit?!"Ivy and Zack cried, reaching for Carmen with fake trepidation, their eyes wide with farse horror and offense. "Carm-!"

Carmen closed the door on their faces, laughing gently before turning around.

With a deep breath, she advanced the steps up to the two-story house, approaching the door. Raising her hand, she took ahold of the knocker and rapped it twice before stepping back. It opened within two seconds. Player stared up at her, reaching out and grabbing her hand before she could even utter a greeting, pulling her inside and closing the door after her. She leaned down and encased him in a hug, which he returned immediately.

 _Don't cry._ She reminded herself sharply, forcing back the tears that bubbled against the corners of her eyes.

Player wasn't crying either, as far as she could tell, just _hugging_ her as if that was the best thing to ever happen to him. She squeezed him back just as hard. It was a long while before he pulled back, beaming at her with such a brotherly smile that she had to close her eyes to stop herself from crying. Because, as long as she could remember being friends with him, she'd regarded him as family, but now, here he was, actually, _biologically_ being her family. It just felt so _right._

"Mom!" Player called, pivoting to face a doorway across from the front door. "Re- uh… _she_ 's here!"

"I'll be there shortly!" A female's voice responded, probably Aunt – _Aunt_ – Piper. Player's mother.

"'She'?" Carmen teased, nudging him. "And here I thought 'Red' was just a nickname. You mean to say you don't actually know my real name? I'd be offended, Player, if I wasn't so happy right now."

"Uhhh…" he squinted at her. "I totally know your name, um, _Kelly_." They shared a grin. "Totally kidding, I know your name's 'Carmen', Carmen. I just don't know if my mom wants to call you Dorthey or Carmen. I think she wants to wait until you tell her yourself what you want to be called. It's… a complicated situation."

"I don't know what I want to be called." Carmen admitted. "For you, 'Red' is fine, but for the rest of my… _our_ family, I…I don't know."

Player blinked up at her. "I know what you mean. When my immediate family started calling me Player, I didn't know if anyone else wanted to call me that or if it should just be them."

"Is that her?" A young woman, looking like an older, female Player, entered the room, twisting her hands together. "Is that Caroline's daughter?"

"Yeah." Player nodded. "Mom, this is…uh… Dorthey/Carmen, and Red, this is Mom, uh… Aunt Piper." He glanced at the two of them, looking increasingly awkward.

"Oh, goodness…" Aunt Piper breathed, looking Carmen up and down. "You're the spitting image of your mother. You're even her same height…" she bit her lip. "I…I swear, I thought you were dead, or else I would've searched everywhere for you, and-"

Carmen encased Aunt Piper in a hug, clenching her eyes shut. "It's…it's okay. I…I didn't realize anyone in my family was even alive. Otherwise I would've begun searching so much earlier, and not… I'm here now, though."

"Yes." Aunt Piper agreed, hiccupping quietly. "You're here now, and I'm…I'm so happy to have you back, sweetheart. You were… _tiny_ when I last saw you. So tiny that I could practically hold you all in one hand, and, oh, goodness, you're so tall!" Aunt Piper pulled back, patting Carmen's shoulder. She circled around Carmen, admiring her niece with excitement. "Goodness! And you're only about twenty? You look so much older!"

"Yeah, only twenty, um…born around 1999? I don't actually know when I was born-"

"You're kidding." Aunt Piper looked at Carmen in a look of horror, then over to her son. "You don't know when you were born?!"

"No, it's not like they knew it at VI- uh, the academy that raised me? They…you know, the-" she scratched the back of her head. "Um…we do…my…" she hesitated awkwardly. "We do ordinarily like celebrating it on December 1st."

Aunt Piper's brow crinkled in amusement. "December 1st, huh? Which one of you came up with that?"

Player raised his hand quietly.

"That's actually pretty close." Aunt Piper told them, glancing at her son with a proud smile. "December 26th, actually."

"Oh no." Player grunted, sticking out his tongue. "You're one of those poor saps who has an almost-Christmas birthday. And I thought it was bad when it was just the 1st."

"And I still don't understand what's wrong with having an almost-Christmas birthday." Carmen shrugged at him, shoving him gently.

"For one, you get all the presents mixed up and you get an overlaod of gifts in December, and don't get anything else year-long. It sucks. Trust me, I have a cousin, uhhhh…oh, dude, he's your cousin too, now, and he's always complaining about having a Christmas-birthday. Except his is on the 15th, so you're worse off. Second, chances are if you were a normal kid hosting a party, everyone else would be too busy with their families during the holidays or doing other holiday parties to come to your celebration."

Carmen flapped her hand at her best friend, scoffing. "Statistics. Besides you, everyone else lives with me, so the last one doesn't count."

"You know what I mean, though!" Player persisted, waving his arms around. "You're different then most Christmas-birthday people, and that's not-" he groaned, glancing at Aunt Piper. " _Help me…_ "

"I don't know, kiddo. I think she's got a point. It doesn't affect her, so…" Aunt Piper shrugged, smiling gently at the two of them. "You've just got to accept that she's got you beat."

Player got that look in his eyes that said that he was going to disconnect his end of the computer so that he didn't have to discuss it any longer. Except he wasn't on a computer, so he was stuck. "My two main sources of support have betrayed me and have teamed up. This is the end of Player. RIP."

"I don't think saying 'RIP' works that way. You can't say that about yourself." Carmen snorted, unrelenting and unregretfully not withdrawing her 'betrayal'. "It makes no sense."

Aunt Piper looked between them as they bantered, stunned. Somehow, the two cousins had found each other out and had become friends without realizing that they were related the whole time. With no knowledge of one another's existence, they had been drawn together, and had become not only best friends, but had learned that they were relatives, too. The only difference between their past relationship and now was that they now were together in person.

How unusual it was. Yet how _perfect_ it was, too.

Piper wondered distantly if they would be as close as they were now if they had known they were cousins from birth. Distantly, she felt as though they would've been. Some friends were just made that way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just love Carmen and Player's friendship. I means a lot to me to have two people connected only through computers, phones and *insert other device here* in a TV show, because that pretty much sums up all of my relationships for two years.  
> This literally just came from a thought of 'but what if they were related?' An alternate is that they're half-siblings, which I think was the original plan for this?


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: (Hopefully) sadness ahead.

"Carmen, when I left VILE island, I brought few objects with me." Shadowsan told her a week after Player had hacked into ACME's files. "I wish to show you a very special item I have held off on showing you until now." His eyes rolled over to the overly-eager Ivy and Zack, sighing affectionately at them. "The troublemakers may also see it, if you so wish."

Carmen glanced at them, then nodded, pulling Player up on her phone. "Let's see it together."

"Remain here." Shadowsan gestured to the couches in the lounge, straightening. "It is best to be viewed in a comfortable setting. I shall go to fetch it."

He strode off, footsteps vanishing without a trace as he retreated to his quarters.

"So." Carmen thoughtfully mused, drumming her fingers against her leg. "Any guesses?"

Ivy and Zack launches into a duel to see who could come up with the most ridiculous suggestions, starting with 'Shadowsan's fetching the invitations to his wedding' and advancing from there.

Carmen glanced at Player, surprised to find him looking quite smug. She arched an eyebrow at him, and his smile increased. "You know something, don't you?"

"I do know something." Player beamed. "Let's just say that I helped Shadowsan in setting this up today; but it was pretty much all him."

Carmen hummed at this, suspicious. "So you can give us a hint?"

"Okay; you're probably going to cry. Not in front of us, but you're going to go up to your room to sob into your pillows and forget to turn off your earring communicator, thus leaving me to record your distress and then later use it as blackmail."

Carmen decided to ignore his exposition; it was what usually ended up happening when she began to cry. (The blackmail turned null and void quickly: Player was too pure to actually use it against her.)

"I am back." Shadowsan bluntly stated as he seemingly materialized before them, placing a small box on the coffee table. He opened it carefully, withdrawing a black rectangle that looked like-

"A cam'ra!" Ivy gasped, staring at it in fascination. "Mum had one 'ust like it when we were toddlahs!"

"She did?" Zack blinked.

"Yeah, little bro, but don't worry 'bout it." Ivy shrugged, too busy marveling over the camera. It looked like deja vu had swatted her across the face.

"These common, as you say, 'relics' were quite popular twenty-five years ago. This one dates back about twenty years, however." Shadowsan held it like it was made of glass, gentle and caring. "When I was a student at VILE academy, my classmate Gregory managed to sneak this particular camera into the academy. The entire class knew of its existence, and opted to keep it concealed from the faculty, lest Gregory be…expelled from the school."

Shadowsan pulled out a collection of photos from the box, laying the first one before then. There was eight people in total in the photo, including a very young Shadowsan. The other seven were quite close in his age, all smiling cheerfully.

"Woah! Young-Sha'owsan is so ador'ble!" Ivy crooned, staring at the photo in quiet pleasure.

"He s'ill 'ad baby fat!" Zack pointed out, gigging.

"That vanished a few months later." Shadowsan grunted, before resuming his tale. "Dexter Wolfe found out about the camera's presence immediately, and, while he approved of the stealth Gregory most likely used to sneak it in, he stole it from us. Whomever managed to sneak into his dorms and recovered it received extra credit. Due to my talents, often I was the candidate who was tasked with facing Wolfe's bedchamber and had to find the camera."

Shadowsan laid out several more photos, a couple of which showed a young-Shadowsan triumphantly entering a room with a roll of film in his hand, war paint splattered across his cheeks. Seeing as how he was supposed to be returning with the camera, and the camera that was being used to take the picture, it was evident that the pictures are faked, but certainly no less wholesome.

"These were the 'victory photos' as Catherine called them, and were usually taken ten minutes after I returned victorious. Yes, I did wear war paint when stealing the camera back. Pertrita insisted. If we took longer then two days to steal it back, Dexter Wolfe would take a photo of something random in very low quality to punish us, wasting precious film."

Shadowsan spread out a trio of horrible photos across the table: so blurry that one could not tell what the were of. "Those were…disappointing days."

Carmen reached out, quietly touching her father's handiwork. Great thief, horrible photographer. The thought made her smile.

"When graduation arrived," Shadowsan proceeded, "he stole the camera a final time. By this point, all of the class, including myself, did not care for the camera anymore. We were moving on from stealing the camera to stealing things of higher value. The secret of having something was no longer alluring." Shadowsan faltered, sighing. "After I returned with Carmen and was elected as the fifth faculty member, I received Dexter Wolfe's former dorm. While moving in, I discovered the camera and a stack of photographs hidden from prying eyes under a floorboard on the ground." He paused thoughtfully. "It was evident that Dexter Wolfe knew I would be the one to succeed him and placed this somewhere only I would find him, perhaps as a trail of breadcrumbs. He always had great faith in me."

Ivy and Zack nodded slowly, no doubt intrigued by Dexter Wolfe's forward thinking.

Carmen reaches across the table to put a comforting hand on Shadowsan's knee.

"At the bottom of the stack, I discovered this." He passed the older picture towards Carmen, watching her quietly for any reaction.

Staring back at her from the picture was Dexter Wolfe, smiling blissfully, and a young woman who greatly resembled Carmen herself. She was holding Dexter's hand gently, and was laughing happily. The whole scene reeked of good vibes.

"I believe that this woman is your mother." Shadowsan gently told her, smiling softly. "I managed to convince Player to do a facial recognition scan of as many woman in the world as he could. He found a perfect match this morning."

"Hera Davidson." Player related, beaming up at Carmen. "Of course, I adjusted the face as if it had aged by twenty-or-so years, so it might be incorrect, but it's worth checkin' out."

Carmen pushed a hand over her mouth, trying to stop herself from sobbing. "Pla-Player, thank you."

"Thank Shadowsan. It was all his idea." Player protested, blocking the praise and exalting it where it was due.

"Shadowsan, _thank you_!" Carmen cried, launching herself over the table and into the man's arms, hugging him as tightly as she could.

He leaned backwards from the 'surprise attack', though was quick to return the hug. After a long moment of Carmen hiding her joyful tears in her coat, he waved Zack and Ivy over, hugging them along with Carmen. He also scooped up the phone Player was on to force the teenager to join in, besides the Canadian's lighthearted protests.

Soon, Carmen would have her mother back, and absolutely everything would be perfect.

(:)

Hera Davidson sighed as he unlocked her apartment, exhausted after a long day at the office. Things had used to be so exiting, back when she was young, but now it was dull. The same thing over and over. Things never changed.

Twisting the knob, she shoved her keys back into her purse and slung the utility over her shoulder, pushing open the door.

Her dog, a tiny, friendly little thing named Feral, ran to greet her, his tail wagging.

"Hi, Feral, I'm home." She sighed at him, scratching his head, latching the door firmly behind her. The apartment had a strict 'no animals' rule; she couldn't risk anyone seeing he puppy. She was lucky Feral couldn't bark.

Hera dropped her purse on her miniature kitchen's counter, removing her coat before draping it over her arm. She opened her fridge to find, as usual, no sign of any food. She reminded herself for the 30th time that month to go shopping, resolving to buy takeout for that night.

She headed for the living room to put her coat on a chair, sighing lightly to herself as she entered, Feral at her feet.

"Hera Davidson, I presume?"

Hera humped in horror, staring at the lithe figure seated in her second chair, hands folded together neatly. She backtracked rapidly to the kitchen, snagged her pistol - also banned in the apartment - from the purse, stuffing it into her pocket, and re-entered the living room, snarling at the intruder.

"Um, that was very abrupt." The intruder noted, humming quietly.

"I had to grab something." Hera vaguely responded. "What do you want?"

"I have reason to believe that you're also known by the alias Vera Cruz?" The intruder continued, leaning forward in interest.

"That was a long time ago. I was only Vera Cruz for a year." Hera said, fingering her gun quietly. "What's it to you?" _This woman…she's probably from the mafia that Dexter was on the run from. Don't let your guard down. Get the chance, shoot._

"Ma'am, I'm Carmen Sandiego. I'm your daughter." The woman said, straightening in her seat, a kind smile on her face.

"That's impossible." Hera stated immediately, crossing her arms. "My daughter died twenty years ago in a fire. She's not alive." She looked at the woman, hit by an odd sense of familiarity. The woman before her did look almost identical to how she had looked in her youth… "Kudos to your disguise, though. A less smart woman might actually fall for it."

"Mom, Hera, no, it's not a disguise!" The woman insisted, rising frantically. "I can prove it! I don't know how, but I can!"

"Sorry, little one." Hera sighed, shaking her head as she drew out her gun, pointing it at the woman. "But you're a fool for believing I'd fall for your odd little act. You have thirty seconds to get out of my appartment with your tail between your legs before I; a) shoot you, b) call the police, c) all of the above."

Feral whimpered at Hera's feet. _Stupid dog._ Didn't even try to let her know there was an intruder in the house. It just sat there like some stupid mammal. Like a stupid cat.

"Wait!" The woman - Carmen? - said, taking a step forward as she held her hands in surrender. "Just listen to me-"

"No." Hera deadpanned, cocking the gun and holding it in a firmer position. "You have twenty seconds."

Carmen paused for a moment, staring at her in muted shock. Then slowly, she backed away towards Hera's balcony - the apartment was luxurious as far as one-bedroom apartments go - hand touching the glass.

"Ten seconds." Hera counted, squeezing the trigger threateningly. "I don't care if you actually are my daughter, or if you're an imposter. You intruded into my house. Now leave or die."

Carmen bit her lip, gaze flicking to something behind Hera.

Before the forty-eight year-old woman could turn around, something grabbed her from behind, smashing her into the ground and ripping the gun from her hand, throwing it across the floor.

Looking up, head aching like crazy, back feeling as though it was shattered (though it was only sore), she found herself staring up at an Asian man, his scowl setting down upon her.

After a long moment, he looked at Carmen, and nodded to her, stepping over Hera. "Let us depart."

Carmen visage was regretful, though she nodded in agreement.

The man and Carmen both stepped into the balcony, jumping off together into the night.

Hera forced herself to her feet to run after them, dashing to the balcony and looking over the railing in time to see two matching gliders, one red and one black, activate, pulling their inhabitants to the top of a black Prius. The two landed, then turned to face Hera in perfect harmony, frowning up at her.

"Be gone!" She screeched after them, not even sure if they could hear her. "Don't come back, you little rats, stay away from me forever!"

Both watched her quietly as the Prius started up and pulled onto the road, driving away from her. She watched them go quietly, ignoring Feral's whimpers at her feet, opting instead to glare after them. She quietly told herself to buy more guns and pepper spray. And a proper guard dog.

And a good apartment that actually allowed these things.

She hoped she never saw either of their stupid faces again. And if she did, she silently prayed that she could punch them across their almost-perfectly symmetrical faces.

She glowered after them once more before closing and locking the balcony, striding off to the kitchen to order some Chinese takeout.

(:)

"I can't believe it." Carmen lamented quietly, drawing her knees up to her chest after entering the Prius, distraught. "After twenty years, I _finally_ find her, and what does she do? She pulls a _gun_ on me! She doesn't even _care_ enough to talk to me!"

"Maybe she didn' reco'nize you?" Ivy suggested weakly, cradling her arms as she glanced back at Carmen.

"How could she not?! We're practically identical in every way except the eyes!" Carmen shouted, glaring at the air in front of her, slamming her hand down on the car seat. "It doesn't-! Who does that?! Turn their back on their family? Their biological family, at least. That doesn't…one doesn't…no!"

"It's more common then you think." Zack said quietly, squeezing the wheels. "Ivy and I…we ha'e this au't, ya see? Au't Ka'en."

"Aunt Ka'en. Ooh, boy, does she 'ust rub me the wron' way." Ivy growled. "She ain' any au't of mine!"

"No, siree." Zack agreed. "Au't Ka'en was ho'ibld." He pulled over to the side of the road so he could face the rest of the crew without disobeyed any rules or risking a crash. "She u'ed to yell at Pops abou' us. Stuff like 'Your chil'ren shouldn' even exist!' and 'Ya nevah shoulda met and ma'idd that good for-nut'in' woman!'. Ya know, the works."

"Bro, tho' are the worse insul's you can thin' of that she 'old Pops? That's not even scratchin' the surface." Ivy shook her head at that, scoffing. "I can thin' of way more horrible thin's, but I'm going to keep it PG."

"The worse pah comes latah."

"Yea, yea." Ivy full-heartedly seconded. "So, like, Mum and Pops die, right? CPS scoops us up an' ask if we 'ave any livin' relatives. Ever'one else 'as kicked the bu'et, so we tell 'em about Au't Ka'en."

"They call, she ans'ers, and wha happens?" Zack rested his head against the steering wheel. "She 'angs up as soon as they spill the tea. She don't come. Leaves big-sis and I alone. We…we knew that we'd be sepera'ed if we got put in the fostah sys'm. Well, Ive won't let that happen. So she came up with a plan."

"We escape' through a window. Went back to our apa'tment, grabbeh' the bea' necessities, and headed deepah into Southie. Laid low and fought foh survival foh years until li'le bro learn'd drivin', I got my han's on a wrench, and we got in conta't with Shar'head-Eddie."

"We nevah heard from Au't Ka'en evah again. She practica'y 'eft is for dead." Zack finished, squeezing Ivy's hand. "Some'imes, even bloo' rela'ives don' wan' ya."

"I was the blood relative who betrayed in my family." Shadowsan said. "I betrayed my brother, severed the last bond of our family because I was prideful. Due to my failure, I drove my brother away." He paused, reaching over to touch Carmen's knee. "It was not until I met you all that I truly grasped the concept of family."

"I'm…not the oldest kid or the only boy in my family." Player admitted over phone, fidgeting. "I had an older brother, Kenneth, who was eight years older. We used to do everything together, and he'd take me everywhere. It was one of his friends that taught me about the White-Hat-Hackers and the basic of computer tech. Then, one day, Kenneth decided I was…well, our entire family was too childish and that he could do better on his own. He up and left. I didn't hear from him for three years, not until he came to visit. I was so mad, though, I didn't come downstairs. I just sat in my room with the doors locked." Player sighed, looking down. "He died two months after that in a car crash after he and his friends got drunk. I was thirteen. It's…it's not a pretty world we live in, not wholesome at all. Sometimes, even our own relatives betray us. Being related by blood doesn't make someone a family."

"Being related by spirit does." Shadowsan said, squeezing Carmen's shoulder.

"Lovin' one another an' nevah givin' up on each othah makes us fa'ily." Ivy told Carmen, wriggling out of the passenger seat to squeeze beside her boss.

"I lova ya, and I'm not givin' up." Zack stated, following his older sister's example and sliding over beside Carmen.

It was now very cramped in the back.

"I will always honor you and be honest, no matter the circumstances." Shadowsaj told her. "Even when not being biologically, you are my daughter."

"Ya are kin," Ivy told Carmen. "Nevah forget that, alrighty?"

"Yea, don' ya evah forget any of that, ya hear?"

"I love you, Red." Player told her honestly. "You're my sister."

"I love you, Carmen, big sis." Ivy and Zack chimed together, hugging her torso.

Shadowsan did not say anything else, just wrapped her up in as comfortable a hug as he could.

She snuggled back, sighing quietly in joy.

Here, she was with her family. She had been searching for so long, that she hadn't realized when she was with them. And she _was_ with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well... they can't all be feel-good oneshots.  
> Not all family accepts you, and not all family wants you.  
> The trick is to finding your true family, the ones that accept you, even when not being blood-born.


End file.
